Thursday, December 18, 2014

This morning:
"I want to watch the show with the cheese you don't eat. The show with Squidgy"
Joe and I have no idea what that means, ask him questions to try to narrow it down - "Is Squidgy an animal? It is a character on Wild Kratts?"
No luck.
I start scrolling through the options on Netflix, asking "Is this it?" until we get to Justin Time, a show I've never watched. But, apparently Henry has watched it sometime in the super TV marathon that this week has been, as he and Stella have had a horrible bug all week.
"Yes! Justin Time!!"
Phew. I guess I need to watch more TV with my kids?

Also this morning:
I try to make Henry cinnamon toast for breakfast. He wants to help spread the butter, and cut the toast. "I can do it myself!" Pushing my arm away. Then after struggling for a few minutes, "I CAN'T do it, Mama!!!" desperately pleading, why aren't I helping him?! We get the toast cut into small squares like he wants, then he insists on putting the toast pieces ONTO cereal. I don't think this will be good. He is determined. This is what he wants. He puts them all on, then wants help in taking them all back off. I guess some things you just have to try to believe?

Last night:
I offer one set of PJ's, the blue dinos, a regular favorite. No. Another option: bear and fox in footies. No. How about the moose ones? You probably guessed it, NO. I hold all three choices up again. No. I put the moose ones on him against vehement protest, get his teeth brushed, and back in the bedroom. He wants the blue dino PJ's, and he wants to brush his teeth himself. A second time. I don't fight it, and he does it all himself. He's ready when he's ready and not before.

This has been a particularly tough week as the kids went from eye infections to stomach flu with no break in between, at the same time as Joe worked 11-hour days, and drove three hours away to buy a pickup after work, late Monday. Henry seemed to be done vomiting yesterday, right when Stella started (in the middle of the night, of course). I have done countless loads of laundry and dishes, scrubbed carpets, floors, sinks, wiped bottoms, held back hair, and all the stuff that goes along with sick kids. How did my parents survive taking care of three? I remember head lice as a child, which seemed like the hugest job ever for my mom to wash the entire house, and treat our heads and pick nits. ALL of my stuffed animals were bagged or washed, and I had a lot of stuffed animals. We are lucky we haven't had that experience yet, I guess. I better knock on wood!

The upside of this week is all of the conversations and time that I've had with both kids. At moments when they were feeling up to doing something besides lying on the couch or in bed, we've done art projects (Henry drew his first people! With legs and faces!), puzzles, designed train routes, and cuddled together. Although my examples above show the frustrating times of trying to talk/live with a nearly three-year-old, there are also many times when communication goes smoothly, and I'm amazed at his seemingly sudden growth in vocabulary and sentence structure. These pauses in regular life give up opportunity to get more in touch and reflect on life without engaging much in the actual normal events of the day-to-day. Silver linings.

Wednesday, December 11, 2013

Last Friday, we got over six inches of snow in Eugene. Today is Wednesday, and school is still cancelled due to icy roads. We are at the point where we have done all of the fun snow activities, and all of the fun indoor activities we can think of. I took my kids to daycare today so they could play with friends and I could get some work done (lesson planning). But then I thought of my lonely little blog and figured I would share a couple of the pictures I've taken the last few days of our snowy wonderland and cookie baking fun.

Neighbor's house with the lovely sky. It's been so clear!

She runs everywhere, in every condition.

Attaching straps to tow Stella by bike.

Henry thought it was a bad idea.

Stella loved it and didn't want to stop.

Cold little nose and mis-matched mittens.

Just doing some blending with ski hat and glasses. No big deal.

Swings!

We love cookies! Notice all the sprinkles? Stella's favorite part.

There you have it, folks! Not pictured: marble tube castles, painting, coloring, cars, puzzles, present shopping, movies (Stella love Super Buddies, Henry loves Dinosaur Train), the super fast slide at the park, and the actual towing of the inner tubes. Also, cold fingers and toes, lots of shouting "Mine!" and PILES of clothes to be washed, dried, folded, etc. I better get to work.

Monday, July 29, 2013

Starting August 26, I will be a full time, grade 7-8 teacher. I am really excited about my new job, and satisfied with our daycare situation. My husband just got a new job as well, so we are going through lots of changes lately!
In the meantime, since school got out and sub jobs ended, I took a very part-time job working at an upscale clothing store. I would want to work there more often if it weren't for the fact that I either pay for childcare, negating most of my profit, or miss out on family time with my husband every time I work. I also have spent most of my paychecks on clothing that I buy with my employee discount, so I'm basically getting paid in clothes, which I do desperately need after the last several years of being pregnant, postpartum, and finally losing all of the baby weight plus some. Overall, the job is mostly fun, often rewarding, and a great learning experience for me in many ways. I keep wanting to share what I've learned with other women so we can all have the best shopping experiences. I've always liked to shop, and I do even more now. So, here it is!

Five rules that I've learned from working with women and clothes:

Always try on. Try on many items, grab two sizes if you're in between, and try on things you're unsure of, but *might like. You will avoid having to return a bunch of stuff. If you're unsure of the correct fit of something, get a second opinion. This brings me to the next thing I've learned.

Utilize the store employees! They know where everything is, or should, they know the sizes and what fits small or runs large. If you are trying to find full-length khaki pants, say so! Let them help you. You will save yourself lots of time. You can always ask for some time alone to try on if you feel too smothered later, and they should happily oblige. They know what is popular, and they sometimes know when sales are coming, They also can be a critical eye and should tell you if something doesn't look right. At the store I work at, we "wardrobe" people and so bring them more items in the dressing room to go with what they already have and build outfits. People often are surprised by what they love on their bodies that they didn't like on the hanger. Some people love having stuff brought to them, others hate it. We will do it until you say stop, and I certainly don't take it personally if someone doesn't want help. But, really, you should want help: we will save you time, help you zip, and should help make shopping fun.

Build complete outfits. If you find a statement piece that you love, but you're not sure you have anything at home that will go with it, find other items to complete the look while you're shopping that day. If you can't find anything that goes, and you get home and you don't find anything in your closet either, you should probably return it. Unless you're the kind of person who is happy to wear stripes with plaids, reds with pinks, etc. Also, mixing patterns is in right now so if it works for you, it works period. Personally, I like to match my socks with my tops so I know I won't wear something unless it has a couple of options to pair with. I used to have skirts that I hadn't worn in years because I didn't have a top that paired well. I am wiser now and shop with complete outfits, including belts, shoes, and jewelry, in mind.

Avoid age discrimination with your clothes. Don't dismiss a look because you think it is "too young" or "too old-lady" for you. I have seen a lot of older women rocking strapless tops, and young women looking great in flowered cardigans. Try something on if you like it even if it's not what you imagine to be the right age for you, get a few opinions, and see how you feel. If you feel good and like something, you should wear it! Of course, if your teenage daughter is going to badger you every time you wear something to the point that you don't want to get it out of the closet, you may want to take that into account. Then, take her shopping with you next time, or have her clear items before you take tags off.

Allow yourself time. Rushed shopping is not usually good shopping. If you have a wedding coming up, start shopping for your outfit when you get the invitation, or before! Choose a day when you can devote several hours, choose a couple of stores, and be prepared to spend time trying on many things.You may find the right thing immediately, and then you can just spend the rest of your time getting frozen yogurt, or a pedicure, or reading a book, or whatever you like to do. But more often, it's going to take time. People get stressed and make bad choices when they only have 30 minutes to find something. You want to find clothes that you're going to love and wear for years to come, so you may need to invest some time into it.

There are actually many more things I've learned about human nature, and about my own strengths and weaknesses, from my clothing store job, but this is a good start in terms of the shopping experience itself.